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A kiss is just ... a crime
KISSING in public will be punished with five years' jail in Indonesia if about 100,000 hardliners who marched through the capital's streets yesterday get their way.The protesters, who arrived in buses organised by mosques and conservative Islamic groups, urged parliament to immediately pass an anti-pornographic Bill, which would also ban erotic poetry, dancing, drawing, writing, photos and film. Critics fear if passed the law will signal the rise of extreme Islamic values. Organisers predicted one million people would attend the demonstration but only about 100,000 turned out. Still, it was one of the largest shows of force by conservative Islam in years. The protest virtually shut down main roads in the capital for several hours as the demonstrators -- shouting slogans and waving banners -- marched to the parliament, which was guarded by hundreds of police officers, some in riot gear. "Pornography is part of the culture of the West and the unbelievers," said demonstrator Choirul Hassan. "They are exporting this to Indonesia to destroy a whole generation of Muslim youth. They must be stopped." Some demonstrators carried banners calling for the imposition of Islamic law in the country, which is home to about 190 million Muslims -- more than any other country -- but also has significant Christian, Hindu and Buddhist minorities. Others held up posters showing monkeys dressed in underwear, with captions reading: "Only animals like to go naked!" "Ban pornography and stop the sex industry," they shouted. "Down with liberalism and secularism," read one banner. The hardline opposition forced the closure of Indonesian Playboy magazine last month after only one edition, even though it had no nudity. Those opposed to the Bill include the country's minority faiths, liberal Muslim groups, artists and several outlying regions which fear their traditional dances and culture may be criminalised. They note the country has anti-pornography laws, and say police, long accused of taking bribes from criminals, should just enforce them better. Pornographic videos and magazines are readily available for sale in the country. Posted by: ryuge 2006-05-22 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=153276 |